Container cap

ABSTRACT

The present invention relates to a container cap comprising an inner cap and an outer cap. The inner cap has a second cylindrical portion and a joint portion. The second cylindrical portion has an open top, and a lower side end which is to be inserted into a neck, and which has a plurality of outlet ports for discharging additives. The joint portion protrudes from the outer circumference of the top of the second cylindrical portion and is detachably joined to a stopper protrusion of the neck. The outer cap has a first cylindrical portion and a threaded portion. The first cylindrical portion is slidably coupled to the inner surface of the second cylindrical portion from the inner surface of an upper plate in a surface-contacting manner, and the lower end thereof extends axially to close the plurality of outlet ports. The threaded portion extends axially from the outer surface of the upper plate to be fastened to the outer surface of the neck. When the outer cap is partially opened, said outlet ports are opened to introduce the additives from a receiving space into the main body of a container. When the outer cap is fully opened, the inner cap is separated from the main body of the container together with the outer cap.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a cap for a container, and moreparticularly to a container cap that inputs an addictive that isisolated and accommodated in the container cap into a container bodywhen an outer cap is partially opened at a first step, and an inner capis separated from the container body together with the outer cap whenthe outer cap is completely opened at a second step, to thereby maintainconvenience of use.

BACKGROUND ART

In general, a container for containing drinking water or cosmeticsincludes: a container body having an receiving space that canaccommodate contents mixed with various raw materials; and a containercap or stopper for airtight sealing up entrance of the container body.

Functional drinks or cosmetics are recently appearing. Accordingly,containers having a structure capable of mixing different contents at apoint in time when consumers use functional drinks or cosmetics arebeing needed.

That is to say, most drinks are mixed beforehand and then sold. Forexample, vitamins such as vitamin C are destroyed relatively fast byheat or ultraviolet rays or by union with water. Therefore, it isdesirable that sensitive vitamins should be added in a drink just beforea consumer consumes the drink. In most cases, transparent or translucentcontainers or moisture transmissible containers are not appropriate forlong-term storage of vitamin drinks for equal reason.

Accordingly, a drink container that enables a consumer to easily add asensitive vitality additive directly to a basic drink contained in thedrink container just before the consumer consumes the basic drink hasbeen developed. Usually, a conventional container cap includes apartitioning member for partitioning different contents or an inner cap.As a result, when a cap or stopper that seals up a container is opened,the partitioning member or the inner cap is led in to an receiving spaceof a container body.

If the partitioning member exists with contents in the receiving space,there is a problem that disturbs withdrawal of contents when a consumerdrinks the contents. It is difficult for the partitioning member to besubmerged onto the bottom of the container, in the case of sol-typecontents, to resultantly cause a drink withdrawing path to be blocked.Further, when a consumer drinks a drink contained in a container, thepartitioning member having entered the receiving space may be led into auser's mouth together with the drink.

Meanwhile, a Korean Patent Laid-open Publication No. 2005-69397discloses a container cap including: a container body having a filleropening on the outer circumference of which a male screw is formed; astorage member that is separably inserted into an inner side of thefiller opening; and an opening member that is combined with the malescrew of the filler opening and is interfered with the storage member ifa screw combining portion is loosened by a certain length, to therebyseparate the storage member from the filler opening.

According to the Korean Patent Laid-open Publication No. 2005-69397, ifthe opening member of the container cap is made to rotate, a femalescrew and an outer stopper protrusion of a main cap are spirally andaxially moved along the male screw of the filler opening and a malescrew of an accommodation unit. If an inner stopper protrusion rubs andslidably moves along an inner surface of the accommodation unit, a lowerend of a slider is seceded from the bottom of the accommodation unit andthus an outlet port is opened. Accordingly, the additive is input intothe inside of the container body and the opening member starts to riseup. Simultaneously, since an end plate is separated from a flange, ancommunication hole is opened and external air is applied into theadditive receiving space, to thus discharge the additive.

In addition, if a rising action of the opening member continues, theouter stopper protrusion contacts an outer protrusion, andsimultaneously the inner stopper protrusion contacts an innerprotrusion. Accordingly, the container body maintains an excellent sealfunction to thus prevent a mixture from leaking. If the opening memberis made to rotate continuously, an outer ratchet that is formed at theleading end of the inner circumference of the outer stopper protrusionis interfered with an inner ratchet of the accommodation unit, to thusrestrict relative rotation between the opening member and the storagemember and to thereby accompany rotation of the storage member. If theopening member is made to rotate further at this state, the female screwof the main cap is departed from the male screw of the filler opening.If a user pulls the opening member in the axial direction while makingthe opening member rotate at this state, the storage member is rotatedtogether with the opening member and is separated from the filleropening.

As described above, the conventional container cap is configured so thatthe flange of the accommodation unit is separated from the end plate atthe rising time of the opening member to thus open the communicationhole of the end plate and apply external air applied to the additivereceiving space, and to thereby discharge the additive.

For this, the conventional container cap includes: a space portion thatis formed between the end plate with the communication hole and a finishplate; and another space portion that is formed between the end plateand both the outer stopper protrusion and the inner stopper protrusion.It is not nearly possible to manufacture the conventional container caphaving a number of the space portions with an injection molding methodusing resin. Thus, in order to realize the conventional container caphaving a number of the space portions, at least two parts should bemanufactured and then the two parts should be mutually united, to thuscause a manufacturing cost to increase.

In addition, in the case of the conventional container cap, the endplate that is bent at right angle on the leading end of theaccommodation unit should be inserted and assembled through a narrowannular space between the outer stopper protrusion and the inner stopperprotrusion. However, it is desirable that the end plate is formed ingreater width than that of the annular space, to thus make the end plateseal the annular space at a first rise of the main cap for dischargingand mixing the additive. As a result, there is a problem that the endplate of the accommodation unit may not be easily inserted into andassembled with the inside of the annular space. Also, when the end plateis inserted and assembled through the narrow annular space between theouter stopper protrusion and the inner stopper protrusion, the outerstopper protrusion is threadedly combined with an outer male screw ofthe accommodation unit to thus induce rotary assembly between the endplate and the outer stopper protrusion. Accordingly, the conventionalcontainer cap has a structure hard to achieve assembly automation ofproducts.

Further, it is not so easy to wash the conventional container cap forre-use after it has been used, because it is hard to dismantle andassemble the conventional container cap having a complex multistagespace portion structure. Thus, there is a problem that a processing costfor re-use increases.

Moreover, if the opening member is made to rotate continuously after thefirst-step partial opening in the conventional container cap, an outerratchet is formed at the leading end of the outer stopper protrusion inorder to separate the opening member from the container body togetherwith the storage member, and an inner ratchet is formed at the lowerside of the end plate of the accommodation unit, to thereby cause aninterference to occur between the outer ratchet and the inner ratchet,to thus restrict relative rotation between the opening member and thestorage member and to thereby accompany rotation of the storage member.However, it makes it very difficult to perform an injection moldingdesign to form the outer ratchet in the inner circumference of the outerstopper protrusion that is positioned in a narrow annular space. It alsorequires for a precision molding process to form the outer ratchet inthe inner circumference of the outer stopper protrusion, to therebycause a manufacturing cost for molding.

Further, since the end plate does not seal the annular spacesufficiently when a user does not execute a first-step partial openingperfectly in the conventional container cap, the mixture may be leakedfrom the inside of the container.

DISCLOSURE Technical Problem

To solve the above problems or defects, it is an object of the presentinvention to provide a container cap that inputs an addictive that isisolated and accommodated in the container cap into a container body soas to be mixed with a content contained in the container body, when anouter cap is partially opened at a first step, and an inner cap isseparated from the container body together with the outer cap when theouter cap is completely opened at a second step, to thereby maintainconvenience of use.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a container capthat is sealed persistently at any stage before and after the first-steppartial opening of the outer cap, to thereby avoid a mixture containedin a container body from leaking.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide acontainer cap that interrupts external air from being inhaled into theinside of an additive receiving space since an inner pressure of theadditive receiving space that is formed when an outer cap is combinedwith an inner cap is set higher than an inner pressure of a containerbody and a pressure of the external air, to thereby enable an additiveto be conserved on a long-term basis.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a containercap that makes a coupling and sealing structure of an outer cap and aninner cap have an easy injection molding structure, as well as thatenables the outer cap and the inner cap to be easily assembled with eachother, in a one-time pushing action instead of a screw-coupling typeassembly.

It is yet still another object of the present invention to provide acontainer cap in which it is so easy to wash the container cap forre-use after it has been used, because it is easy to dismantle andassemble the container cap, to thereby enable an economic re-use.

Technical Solution

To accomplish the above and other objects of the present invention,according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided acontainer cap that is detachably combined with a neck that is extendedfrom a container body containing a content and at the uppermost portionof which a neck stopper protrusion is protrudingly formed in which anadditive is accommodated in an internal receiving space of the containercap, the container cap comprising:

an inner cap having a second cylindrical portion whose upper portion isopened in which a number of outlet ports through which the additive isdischarged are formed at the lower side end of the second cylindricalportion that is inserted into the inside of the neck, and a jointportion that is protrudingly formed from an outer circumference of anupper end of the second cylindrical portion and that is detachablycombined with the neck stopper protrusion of the neck; and

an outer cap having a first cylindrical portion that is slidablycombined on an inner circumferential surface of the second cylindricalportion from an inner side of an upper plate in a surface-contactingmanner and whose lower end is axially extended to block the number ofthe outlet ports, and a threaded portion that is extended axially froman outer circumference of the upper plate to be screw-engaged with theouter circumference of the neck,

wherein the number of the outlet ports are opened and thus the additiveof the receiving space is input into the inside of the container body,at the time of partially opening the outer cap, and the outer cap isseparated from the container body together with the inner cap, at thetime of completely opening the outer cap.

Preferably but not necessarily, the joint portion of the inner capcomprises:

a first stopper protrusion that is stop-coupled with a threaded portionstopper protrusion that is disposed on the inner circumferential surfaceof the upper side of the threaded portion on the outer circumferentialsurface of the joint portion, at the time of completely opening theouter cap; and

a second stopper protrusion that is formed on an inner circumferentialsurface of the leading end of the joint portion so as to be detachablycombined with the neck stopper protrusion of the neck.

Preferably but not necessarily, the second cylindrical portion furthercomprises:

a number of connecting portions that are extended at intervals at alower end of the second cylindrical portion to form the number of theoutlet ports;

a slant bottom portion whose central portion is protruded into theinside of the receiving space; and

a cylindrical extension portion that is extended axially from the slantbottom portion and is selectively fitted with the lower end of the firstcylindrical portion and whose lower end is connected to the lower end ofthe number of the connecting portions.

Preferably but not necessarily, a coupling force between the neckstopper protrusion and the second stopper protrusion is set larger thanthat between the cylindrical extension portion of the slant bottomportion and the first cylindrical portion, at the time of partiallyopening the outer cap, and an upward pressure that is applied to thefirst stopper protrusion by the threaded portion stopper protrusion isset larger than the coupling force between the neck stopper protrusionand the second stopper protrusion, at the time of completely opening theouter cap.

Preferably but not necessarily, when the lower end of the firstcylindrical portion is fitted with the cylindrical extension portion,the receiving space in which the additive is accommodated is formed andthe receiving space is established in a sealed form.

Preferably but not necessarily, the container cap further comprises afirst annular small protrusion that is protrudingly formed on the innercircumference of the second cylindrical portion in an annular form andforms a sealing structure between the first and second cylindricalportions; a second annular small protrusion that is protrudingly formedon the upper surface of the joint portion and forms a sealing structurewhen the second annular small protrusion contacts the lower surface ofthe upper plate.

Preferably but not necessarily, the inner cap is formed with a materialwhose elastic strain is larger than that of the outer cap.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provideda container cap that is detachably combined with a neck that is extendedfrom a container body containing a content and at the uppermost portionof which an annular neck stopper protrusion is protrudingly formed, thecontainer cap comprising:

an inner cap having a second cylindrical portion whose upper portion isopened in which a number of outlet ports through which the additivecontained in an internal receiving space is discharged are formed at thelower side end of the second cylindrical portion that is inserted intothe inside of the neck, and a joint portion that is protrudingly formedfrom an outer circumference of an upper end of the second cylindricalportion and that is detachably combined with the neck stopper protrusionof the neck, in which a first stopper protrusion is protrudingly formedon the outer circumferential surface of the joint portion, at the timeof completely opening the outer cap and a second stopper protrusion isformed on an inner circumferential surface of the leading end of thejoint portion so as to be detachably combined with the neck stopperprotrusion of the neck; and

an outer cap having a first cylindrical portion that is slidablycombined on an inner circumferential surface of the second cylindricalportion from an inner side of an upper plate in a surface-contactingmanner and whose lower end is axially extended to block the number ofthe outlet ports, to thus selectively establishing the receiving spacein a sealed form when the first cylindrical portion is coupled with thesecond cylindrical portion, and a threaded portion that is extendedaxially from an outer circumference of the upper plate to bescrew-engaged with the outer circumference of the neck, in which athreaded portion stopper protrusion that is fitted with the firststopper protrusion of the inner cap is disposed on the innercircumference of the upper side of the threaded portion, so that theouter cap is separated from the container body together with the innercap, at the time of completely opening the container cap, wherein thenumber of the outlet ports are opened when the outer cap is partiallyopened and thus the additive of the receiving space is discharged intothe container body.

Preferably but not necessarily, the second cylindrical portion furthercomprises:

a number of connecting portions that are extended at intervals at alower end of the second cylindrical portion to form the number of theoutlet ports;

a slant bottom portion whose central portion is protruded into theinside of the receiving space; and

a cylindrical extension portion that is extended axially from the slantbottom portion and is selectively fitted with the lower end of the firstcylindrical portion and whose lower end is connected to the lower end ofthe number of the connecting portions.

Preferably but not necessarily, a coupling force between the neckstopper protrusion and the second stopper protrusion is set larger thanthat between the cylindrical extension portion of the slant bottomportion and the first cylindrical portion, at the time of partiallyopening the outer cap, and an upward pressure that is applied to thefirst stopper protrusion by the threaded portion stopper protrusion isset larger than a coupling force between the lower surface of the neckstopper protrusion and the second stopper protrusion, at the time ofcompletely opening the outer cap.

Preferably but not necessarily, the container cap further comprises: afirst annular small protrusion that is protrudingly formed on at leastone of the outer circumference of the cylindrical extension portion andthe inner circumference of the lower end of the first cylindricalportion that is fitted with the outer circumference of the cylindricalextension portion and forms a sealing structure; a second annularstopper protrusion that is protrudingly formed on the innercircumference of the second cylindrical portion in an annular form andforms a sealing structure between the first and second cylindricalportions; and a third annular small protrusion that is protrudinglyformed on the upper surface of the joint portion and forms a sealingstructure when the second annular small protrusion contacts the lowersurface of the upper plate.

Preferably but not necessarily, the container cap further comprises: askirt that is integrally formed at the lowermost side of the threadedportion and on the inner circumference of which a number of protrusionsare formed at intervals, to thus be separated from the container cap atthe time of opening the container cap to then remain in the neck,wherein the neck preferably comprises an annular interception protrusionthat is disposed at the lower side of the male screw thread that isscrew-engaged with the threaded portion to thus be snap-engaged with theprotrusions of the skirt and that separates the skirt from the containercap at the time of opening the container cap to then remain in the neck.

Preferably but not necessarily, the neck comprises a male screw threadthat is disposed at the lower side of the neck stopper protrusion andthat is screw-engaged with the threaded portion, and wherein the neckstopper protrusion is formed of an outer diameter smaller than that ofthe male screw thread to prevent mutual collision between the jointportion of the inner cap and the threaded portion of the outer cap, whenthe threaded portion of the outer cap is screw-engaged with the malescrew thread at a state where the joint portion of the inner cap iscoupled with the neck stopper protrusion.

Preferably but not necessarily, a slope surface or curved surface isformed on an upper surface of the first stopper protrusion of the jointportion so as to be snap coupled with the threaded portion stopperprotrusion when the outer cap and the inner cap are coupled with eachother,

in which a lower surface of the first stopper protrusion of the jointportion is perpendicular to the outer circumferential surface of thejoint portion so as to be stop-coupled with the threaded portion stopperprotrusion at the time of completely opening the outer cap, and

wherein a slope surface or curved surface is formed on the lower surfaceof the threaded portion stopper protrusion so as to be snap coupled withthe first stopper protrusion of the joint portion when the outer cap andthe inner cap are coupled with each other,

in which the upper surface of the threaded portion stopper protrusion isperpendicular to the inner circumferential surface of the threadedportion so as to be stop-coupled with the first stopper protrusion ofthe joint portion at the time of completely opening the outer cap.

Preferably but not necessarily, the container cap further comprises ahemispherical ring-shaped protrusion that is disposed at the upperportion of the threaded portion stopper protrusion in order to form agroove that is snap-coupled with the first stopper protrusion that isformed in the joint portion, at the time of partially opening the outercap.

Preferably but not necessarily, an inclined angle between a contactsurface on which the lower surface of the stopper protrusion contactsthe upper surface of the second stopper protrusion and a horizontalplane is established taking an elastic force of the second stopperprotrusion into consideration.

According to still another aspect of the present invention, there isprovided a container cap that is detachably combined with a neck at theuppermost portion of which an annular neck stopper protrusion isprotrudingly formed in which a male screw thread is disposed at thelower side of the neck stopper protrusion, and that comprises an innercap and an outer cap that make an additive contained in an internalreceiving space input into a container body, at the time of partiallyopening the outer cap, and that are separated together from thecontainer body, at the time of completely opening the outer cap, whereinthe inner cap comprises:

a second cylindrical portion whose upper portion is opened in which anumber of outlet ports through which the additive is discharged areformed at the lower side end of the second cylindrical portion that isinserted into the inside of the neck;

a number of connecting portions that are extended at intervals at alower end of the second cylindrical portion to form the number of theoutlet ports;

a slant bottom portion whose central portion is protruded into theinside of the receiving space and that comprises a cylindrical extensionportion whose outer circumference of which is extended axially and whoselower end is connected to the lower end of the number of the connectingportions; and

a joint portion that is protrudingly formed from an outer circumferenceof an upper end of the second cylindrical portion and that is detachablycombined with the neck stopper protrusion of the neck, in which a firststopper protrusion is formed in an annular form on the outercircumference of the inner cap and a second stopper protrusion is formedon an inner circumferential surface of the leading end of the jointportion so as to be detachably combined with the neck stopper protrusionof the neck,

wherein the outer cap comprises:

a circular upper plate;

a first cylindrical portion that is slidably combined on an innercircumferential surface of the second cylindrical portion from an innerside of the upper plate in a surface-contacting manner and whose lowerend is axially extended to block the number of the outlet ports, so asto be coupled with the cylindrical extension portion, to therebyselectively establish the receiving space in a sealed form; and

a threaded portion that is extended axially from an outer circumferenceof the upper plate to be screw-engaged with the male screw thread of theneck, in which a threaded portion stopper protrusion is disposed on theinner circumference of the upper side of the threaded portion so as tobe stop-coupled with the first stopper protrusion of the inner cap, atthe time of completely opening the outer cap.

According to yet another aspect of the present invention, there isprovided a container cap that is detachably combined with a neck that isextended from a container body containing a content and at the innercircumference of which a stop groove is formed, the container capcomprising: an inner cap; and an outer cap,

wherein the inner cap comprises:

a second cylindrical portion whose upper portion is opened in which anumber of outlet ports through which the additive contained in aninternal receiving space is discharged are formed at the lower side endof the second cylindrical portion that is inserted into the inside ofthe neck, and a first stopper protrusion that is snap-coupled with thestop groove is formed at the outer circumference of the upper side ofthe second cylindrical portion;

a slant bottom portion whose central portion is protruded into theinside of the receiving space and that comprises a cylindrical extensionportion whose outer circumference of which is extended axially and whoselower end is connected to the lower end of the second cylindricalportion; and

a joint portion that is extended along the upper portion of the neckfrom an outer circumference of an upper end of the first stopperprotrusion in the second cylindrical portion and at the leading end ofwhich a second stopper protrusion is protrudingly formed, and

wherein the outer cap comprises:

a first cylindrical portion that is slidably combined on an innercircumferential surface of the second cylindrical portion from an innerside of an upper plate in a surface-contacting manner and whose lowerend is axially extended to block the number of the outlet ports, to thusselectively establishing the receiving space in a sealed form when thefirst cylindrical portion is coupled with the slant bottom portion; and

a threaded portion that is extended axially from an outer circumferenceof the upper plate to be screw-engaged with the outer circumference ofthe neck, in which a threaded portion stopper protrusion that is fittedwith the second stopper protrusion of the inner cap is disposed on theinner circumference of the upper side of the threaded portion, so thatthe outer cap is separated from the container body together with theinner cap, at the time of completely opening the container cap, and

wherein the number of the outlet ports are opened when the outer cap ispartially opened and thus the additive of the receiving space isdischarged into the container body.

In this case, the receiving space formed by the first and secondcylindrical portions are established at higher pressure than those ofthe inside and outside of the container body.

Advantageous Effects

A container cap according to the present invention enables a couplingand sealing structure of an outer cap and an inner cap to be easilymanufactured, as well as that enables the outer cap and the inner cap tobe easily assembled with each other, in a one-time pushing actioninstead of a screw-coupling type assembly, and enables it easy to washthe container cap for re-use after it has been used, because it is easyto dismantle and assemble the container cap, to thereby enable aneconomic re-use.

A container cap according to the present invention enables an additivethat is accommodated in the container cap into a container body, when anouter cap is partially opened at a first step, and enables an inner capto be separated from the container body together with the outer cap whenthe outer cap is completely opened at a second step, to thereby maintainconvenience of use.

A container cap according to the present invention is sealedpersistently at any stage even before and after the first-step partialopening of the outer cap, to thereby avoid a mixture contained in acontainer body from leaking, and interrupts external air from beinginhaled into the inside of an additive receiving space since an innerpressure of the additive receiving space that is formed when an outercap is combined with an inner cap is set higher than an inner pressureof a container body and a pressure of the external air, to therebyenable an additive to be conserved on a long-term basis.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a container cap according to afirst preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 2 to 4 are exploded perspective views for sequentially explainingactions for use of the container cap according to the first preferredembodiment of the present invention, respectively.

FIGS. 5, 7 and 8 are axial cross-sectional views for sequentiallyexplaining actions for use of the container cap according to the firstpreferred embodiment of the present invention, respectively,respectively, and FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view for explaining asealing structure between a first cylindrical portion and a slant bottomportion according to the first preferred embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIGS. 9 and 10 are cross-sectional views illustrating a process ofwrapping an additive in the container cap according to the firstpreferred embodiment of the present invention in stepwise, respectively.

FIGS. 11 to 13 are axial cross-sectional views for sequentiallyexplaining actions for use of the container cap according to a secondpreferred embodiment of the present invention, respectively.

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a container cap accordingto a third preferred embodiment of the present invention.

BEST MODE

The above and/or other objects and/or advantages of the presentinvention will become more apparent by the following description.Hereinbelow, a container cap according to a respective embodiment of thepresent invention will be described in detail with reference to theaccompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a container cap according to afirst preferred embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 2 to 4 areexploded perspective views for sequentially explaining actions for useof the container cap according to the first preferred embodiment of thepresent invention, respectively. FIGS. 5, 7 and 8 are axialcross-sectional views for sequentially explaining actions for use of thecontainer cap according to the first preferred embodiment of the presentinvention, respectively, respectively, and FIG. 6 is a cross-sectionalview for explaining a sealing structure between a first cylindricalportion and a slant bottom portion according to the first preferredembodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 9 and 10 are cross-sectionalviews illustrating a process of wrapping an additive in the containercap according to the first preferred embodiment of the present inventionin stepwise, respectively.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 8, a container cap 1 according to a firstembodiment of the present invention greatly includes: an outer cap 10that is screw-engaged with a neck 6 of a container body 5 and thatreceives a user's actuating force; and an inner cap 20 that is combinedwith the inside of the outer cap 10 and forms an receiving space lacontaining an additive “A” in the inside of the inner cap 20 togetherwith the outer cap 10.

As shown in FIG. 5, it is also preferable that a skirt 10 a that isintegrally formed with the outer cap 10 at the lowermost side of theouter cap 10 but is separated from the outer cap 10 at the time ofopening the container cap 1 to then remain in the neck 6. A number ofprotrusions are formed at intervals on the inner circumference of theskirt 10 a so as to be snap-engaged with an annular interceptionprotrusion 6 c that is formed in the neck 6 to be described later.

It is well-known technology that the skirt 10 a is used for identifyingwhether or not products manufactured by a manufacture are not damagedbut kept as its original form during circulation when the productsmanufactured by the manufacturer, that is, goods containing aliquid-phase content in a container for example are sold by sellers.

In FIGS. 1 to 4, the skirt 10 a has not been illustrated forconveniences of explanation.

First, any of a cylindrical or rectangular vessel is applicable as acontainer body 5 if it can contain liquid-phase content therein. A screwthread is formed in the cylindrical neck 6 at the upper side of which anentrance is formed and with the outer circumference of which thecontainer cap 1 is screw-engaged. In addition, the content accommodatedin the inside of the container body 5 may be a gel-type or sol-typecontent other than a liquid-phase content in the case that the containerbody 5 is used to contain a cosmetics or commodities.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the annular interception protrusion 6 c thatseparates the skirt 10 a from the outer cap 10 at the time of openingthe container cap 1 to then remain in the neck 6 is disposed in the neck6. In addition, a support 6 d that is used at the time of assembling thecontainer cap 1 is formed at the lower side of the annular interceptionprotrusion 6 c. The skirt 10 a is inserted into a groove formed betweenthe interception projection 6 c and the support 6 d in a snap couplingmanner.

A male screw thread 6 a of one line or a multi-line of two lines or moreis arranged at the upper side of the annular interception projection 6c. An annular stopper protrusion 6 b is protruded at the uppermost sideof the neck 6 so as to be combined with the joint portion 22 of theinner cap 20. The neck stopper protrusion 6 b is formed of an outerdiameter smaller than that of the male screw thread 6 a to preventmutual collision between the joint portion of the inner cap and thethreaded portion of the outer cap, when the threaded portion of theouter cap 10 is screw-engaged with the male screw thread 6 a at a statewhere the joint portion 22 of the inner cap 20 is coupled with the neckstopper protrusion 6 b.

It is desirable that a right angle is formed between the lower surfaceof the interception projection 6 c and the outer circumference of theneck 6. An angle that is achieved by the lower surface of the stopperprotrusion 6 b and the outer circumference of the neck 6 is involvedwith an opening structure of the container cap 1, which will bedescribed in more detail when a coupling structure of the joint portion22 of the inner cap 20.

The container cap 1 is combined with the neck 6 of the container body 5to thus maintain an air-tight state so as to prevent a content containedin the container body 5 from being leaking, and simultaneously to makean additive “A” that is separately contained in an receiving space la ofthe inside of the container cap 1 input into the inside of the containerbody 5 to then be mixed with the content contained in the container body5 at a first step of partially opening the outer cap 10, and to make theinner cap 20 separated from the container body 5 together with the outercap 10 at a second step of completely opening the outer cap 10, fordrinking the content mixed with the additive.

The outer cap 10 of the container cap 1 according to a first embodimentof the present invention includes: a circular upper plate 12 in which atwo-stage bent step portion 12 a is formed so that the central portionof the upper surface of the circular upper plate 12 is protruded fromthe periphery of the central portion thereof; a threaded portion 11 thatis extended axially from an outer circumference of the upper plate to bescrew-engaged with the neck 6; and a first cylindrical portion 13 thatis axially extended from the inner side of the step portion 12 a of theupper plate 12 in parallel with and at a distance from the threadedportion 11 preferably, to thus form an receiving space la containing anadditive “A” together with the inner cap 20.

An annular groove 12 b is formed between the outer circumference of thefirst cylindrical portion 13 and the inner circumference of the stepportion 12 a of the upper plate 12. The function of the groove 12 b willbe described later.

The threaded portion 11 preferably includes: a number of anti-skidprojections 11 a for anti-skid when a user's actuating force is applied,that are protrudingly formed on the outer circumference thereof; and afemale screw thread 11 b formed of one line or a multi-line of two linesor more and that is formed at the inner circumference thereof so as tobe screw-engaged with the male screw thread 6 a of the neck 6. In thiscase, it is possible that a number of anti-skid grooves are formed onthe outer circumference of the threaded portion 11 instead of a numberof the projections 11 a.

In addition, a hemispherical ring-shaped protrusion 11 e whosecross-section is substantially hemispherical and a stopper protrusion 11c that is disposed adjacent to the ring-shaped protrusion 11 e and whoseupper surface is protruded to form a right angle with respect to theinner circumference of the threaded portion 11 so as to be locked with afirst stopper protrusion 22 a of the joint portion 22, are formed on theinner circumference of the upper side of the female screw thread 11 b,in order to form a groove 11 d that is snap-engaged with the firststopper protrusion 22 a formed in the joint portion 22 of the inner cap20 to be described later at the time of opening the container cap 1.

Meanwhile, the inner cap 20 of the container cap 1 comprises: a slantbottom portion 21 whose central portion is protruded at the lower sidethereof; a second cylindrical extension portion 23 that is extendedaxially from the slant bottom portion 21 and whose inner circumferenceslidably contacts the outer circumference of the first cylindricalportion 13 in a surface-contacting manner; and a joint portion 22 thatis primarily extended circumferentially from the upper side of thesecond cylindrical portion 23 and then secondarily extended axially, tothus be bent in a two-stage form.

It is desirable that an inner diameter of the upper end of the secondcylindrical portion 23 is formed relatively larger than that of thelower end thereof, and an outer diameter of the lower end of the firstcylindrical portion 13 is formed relatively smaller than that of theupper end thereof, so that the first cylindrical portion 13 can beeasily combined with the inside of the second cylindrical portion 23. Itis also desirable that a gap is formed between the inner circumferenceof the neck and the outer circumference of the second cylindricalportion 23 so as to achieve an elastic deformation when the firstcylindrical portion 13 is combined with the inside of the secondcylindrical portion 23.

It is desirable that the slant bottom portion 21 is formed as a conicalshape, but any cross-sectional shape of a semicircular shape, a roundstyle shape, and a truncated conical shape is applicable if across-sectional shape of the slant bottom portion 21 may make anadditive “A” of a powder form easily move to the lateral surface of theslant bottom portion 21 by gravity.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 7, a number of outlet ports 24 are formed atequal intervals at the lower side of the second cylindrical portion 23.In the case that lower end of the first cylindrical portion 13 moves tothe upper level of the outlet ports 24 according to the first-steppartial opening of the outer cap 10, the additive “A” accommodated inthe receiving space la through the number of the outlet ports 24 isinput into the inside of the container body 5. In this case, as clearlyillustrated in FIGS. 1 and 3, a number of connection portions 24 a forconnecting the second cylindrical portion 23 and the slant bottomportion 21 are disposed between the number of the outlet ports 24.

In addition, a number of grooves 25 into which the lower end of thefirst cylindrical portion 13 can be inserted are partially formed alongthe outer circumference of the slant bottom portion 21, between theslant bottom portion 21 and the number of the connection portions 24 aof the second cylindrical portion 23.

Moreover, the slant bottom portion 21 includes a cylindrical extensionportion 21 a that is primarily bent and extended axially at the outercircumference thereof, so as to establish the inside of the receivingspace 1 in a sealed state while blocking the number of the outlet ports24, when the lower end of the first cylindrical portion 13 is combinedwith the slant bottom portion 21, in which the cylindrical extensionportion 21 a is mutually connected with the number of the connectionportions 24 a of the second cylindrical portion 23, to thus form anumber of grooves 25.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 6, in order to reinforce a sealingperformance when the lower end of the first cylindrical portion 13 isfitted with the outer circumference the cylindrical extension portion 21a, at least one sealing annular small protrusion 21 a is formed on theouter circumference of the cylindrical portion 21 a, or at least oneannular small protrusion 13 a is formed on the inner circumference ofthe lower end of the first cylindrical portion 13. Otherwise, theannular small protrusions 21 b and 13 a may be formed on both the outercircumference of the cylindrical portion 21 a and the innercircumference of the lower end of the first cylindrical portion 13,respectively. It is desirable that at least one annular small protrusion13 a is formed only on the inner circumference of the lower end of thefirst cylindrical portion 13. In the case of a large-diameter containercap, it is desirable to form a sealing annular small protrusion, but inthe case of a small-diameter container cap, it may be justified even toomit a sealing annular small protrusion.

In this case, a number of radial reinforcement frames may be formed onthe cylindrical extension portion 21 a and the lower surface of theslant bottom portion 21 in order to strengthen a support intensity ofthe cylindrical extension portion 21 a and the slant bottom portion 21when the lower end of the first cylindrical portion 13 is fitted withthe outer circumference on the cylindrical extension portion 21 a.

Moreover, an annular small protrusion 23 b is formed on the innercircumference of the second cylindrical portion 23 in order to reinforcea sealing performance when the inner circumference of the secondcylindrical portion 23 contact the outer circumference of the firstcylindrical portion 13 in a surface-contacting manner, or an annularsmall protrusion 22 c is formed on the upper surface of the jointportion 22 in order to reinforce a sealing performance when the uppersurface of the joint portion 22 contacts the lower surface of the upperplate 12 in surface-contacting manner.

In addition, a sealing extension portion 23 a is formed at the uppermostportion of the second cylindrical portion 23, and the sealing extensionportion 23 a is fitted into an annular groove 12 b that is formed on thelower surface of the first cylindrical portion 13 when the inner cap 20and the outer cap 10 are completely combined, to thereby achieve asealing performance.

Meanwhile, an annular groove 22 d is formed at the lower side of thejoint portion 22 that is bent and extended in a two-stage form the upperside of the second cylindrical portion 23, so as to surround an annularstopper protrusion 6 b that is formed at the uppermost side of the neck6 when the container cap 1 is not open, that is, when the container cap1 is initially assembled with the neck 6 of the container body 5. Whenthe container cap 1 is initially assembled with the neck 6 of thecontainer body 5, it is desirable that the annular groove 22 d has astructure corresponding to the shape of the uppermost side of the neck 6in which the stopper protrusion 6 b has been formed so that a sealingfunction is attained between the lower surface of the joint portion 22and the upper portion of the neck 6.

A second stopper protrusion 22 b that is snap-engaged with the stopperprotrusion 6 b during assembly is formed on the inner circumference ofthe leading end of the joint portion 22. A first stopper protrusion 22 athat is snap-engaged with a groove 11 d of the threaded portion 11 atthe time of the first-step partial opening of the container cap 1 and isstop-engaged with the stopper protrusion 11 c at the time of thesecond-stop complete opening of the container cap 1 is formed on theouter circumference of the joint portion 22.

The snap-engagement of the first stopper protrusion 22 a and the groove11 d and the temporary stop of the container cap 1 can make a userrecognize intuitively when the container cap 1 reaches the first-steppartially opened state by rotation of the container cap 1, to therebymake the user recognize that an additive “A” accommodated in thereceiving space la is being input into the inside of the container body5 and thus make him or her shake the container body 5 to thus derive theadditive “A” to be mixed with the content contained in the containerbody 5.

As shown in FIG. 7, a setting position of the first stopper protrusion22 a and the groove 11 d that are mutually snap-engaged is disposed soas to coincide with when the lower end of the first cylindrical portion13 moves to the upper side of the outlet ports 24 and thus reaches atime when the outlet ports 24 is opened, that is, when the first-steppartial opening of the outer cap, that is, the container cap 1.

Meanwhile, as shown in an enlarged view of FIG. 7, it is desirable thata slope or curved surface is formed on the upper surface of the firststopper protrusion 22 a of the joint portion 22 so as to be snap-engagedwith the stopper protrusion 11 c of the threaded portion 11 at the timeof assembling the outer cap 10 and the inner cap 20, and the lowersurface of the first stopper protrusion 22 a of the joint portion 22 isformed perpendicularly to the outer circumferential surface of the jointportion 22 so as to be stop-engaged with the stopper protrusion 11 c ofthe threaded portion 11 at the time of completely opening the containercap 1. In addition, it is desirable that a slope or curved surface isformed on the lower surface of the stopper protrusion 11 c of thethreaded portion 11 so as to be snap-engaged with the first stopperprotrusion 22 a of the joint portion 22 at the time of assembling theouter cap 10 and the inner cap 20, and the upper surface of the stopperprotrusion 11 c of the threaded portion 11 is formed perpendicularly tothe inner circumferential surface of the threaded portion 11 so as to bestop-engaged with the first stopper protrusion 22 a of the joint portion22 at the time of completely opening the container cap 1.

In addition, it is desirable that an angle that is formed between acontacting surface on which the lower surface of the stopper protrusion6 b contacts the upper surface of the second stopper protrusion 22 b andthe horizontal plane is set as a sloped angle greater than zero (0), sothat a coupling relationship can be easily released between the stopperprotrusion 6 b of the neck 6 and the second stopper protrusion 22 b thatis snap-engaged with the stopper protrusion 6 b of the neck 6 when thestopper protrusion 11 c applies an upward pressure to the first stopperprotrusion 22 a, according to the second-step complete opening of thecontainer cap 1. The sloped angle is preferably set according to anelastic force and a stiffness or rigidity of the inner cap 20 that isintegrally formed with the second stopper protrusion 22 b and those ofthe outer cap 10 that is integrally formed with the stopper protrusion11 c.

Considering this, the outer cap 10 of the present invention is made of asynthetic resin material whose stiffness is high and elastic force islow, and the inner cap 20 is made of an elastic material whose stiffnessis relatively low and elastic force is high, for example, rubber, softplastics, elastomer, etc.

In the case that the outer cap 10 and the inner cap 20 are made ofmaterials whose elastic forces are respectively different as describedabove, an angle that is formed between a contacting plane on which thelower surface of the stopper protrusion 6 b contacts the upper surfaceof the second stopper protrusion 22 b and the horizontal plane isestablished considering the elastic forces. An upward pressure that isapplied to the first stopper protrusion 22 a by the stopper protrusion11 c according to the second-step complete opening of the container cap1 is set larger than the coupling force formed between the lower surfaceof the stopper protrusion 6 b and the second stopper protrusion 22 b.

Moreover, the coupling force formed between the lower surface of thestopper protrusion 6 b and the second stopper protrusion 22 b should beset larger than that of the first cylindrical portion 13 that is fittedinto the cylindrical extension portion 21 a of the slant bottom portion21. This is because the lower end of the first cylindrical portion 13 isreleased from the cylindrical extension portion 21 a of the slant bottomportion 21 while maintaining a state where the joint portion 22 of theinner cap 20 is combined with the stopper protrusion 6 b of the neck 6until the first-step partial opening of the outer cap 10.

Hereinbelow, operation of the container cap 1 according to the firstembodiment of the present invention will follow.

First, an additive “A” is contained in the inside of the firstcylindrical portion 13 of the outer cap 10, in the container cap 1 ofthis invention. Then, if the inner cap 20 is simply pushed into theinside of the outer cap 10 at the FIG. 9 state, an elastic deformationis attained between the inner cap 20 and the outer cap 10. Here, if thesealing extension portion 23 a of the second cylindrical portion 23 ofthe inner cap 20 is pushed and inserted into the groove 12 b of theouter cap 10 while passing through a state of FIG. 10 that the firststopper protrusion 22 a of the inner cap 20 is combined into the groove11 d of the outer cap 10, the lower end of the second cylindricalportion 23 is fitted with the cylindrical extension portion 21 a of theslant bottom portion 21, to thus achieve a perfect sealing couplingstructure to thereby complete an assembly of the container cap 1 at atime.

The container cap 1 assembled as mentioned above does not leak theadditive “A” since the outlet ports 24 are shielded by the first andsecond cylindrical portions 13 and 23 and the internal receiving spacela keeps a sealing state.

Then, when the container cap 1 is made to rotate for example in theright-hand screw direction and thus screw-engaged with the neck 6 of thecontainer body 5 in which a liquid-phase content is accommodated, thesecond stopper protrusion 22 b of the joint portion 22 of the inner cap20 is snap-engaged with the stopper protrusion 6 b of the neck 6, andthe skirt 10 a is also snap-engaged with the groove formed between theinterception protrusion 6 c and the support 6 d, as shown in FIGS. 2 and5.

If the lower end of the second cylindrical portion 23 is fitted with thea sealing groove 25 of the inner cap 20, the internal pressure of thereceiving space la that is formed by the first and second cylindricalportions 13 and 23 is set higher than the internal pressure of thecontainer body 5 and the atmosphere. Therefore, this pressure state canprevent the internal air, moisture, or content in the container frombeing mixedly input into the inside of the receiving space 1 a, to thusenable a long-term protection of the additive “A” accommodated in thereceiving space 1 a.

Meanwhile, if products that are assembled as described above and aredelivered to users through a circulation process, users open thecontainer cap 1 in order to drink the internal content of the containerbody 5.

In this case, if a user rotates the outer cap 10 for example in theleft-hand screw direction, the outer cap 10 and the skirt 10 a areseparated by the interception protrusion 6 c. Thereafter, if the userrotates the outer cap 10 continuously, the first stopper protrusion 22 ais snap-engaged with the groove 11 d of the threaded portion 11 a whilepassing through the hemispherical ring-shaped protrusion 11 e and isstopped by the stopper protrusion 11 c to then be temporarily stoppedand be set the first-step partial opening state, as shown in FIGS. 3 and7.

If the first stopper protrusion 22 a reaches the first-step partialopening state, the lower end of the first cylindrical portion 13 movesto the upper side of the outlet ports 24. Accordingly, the additive “A”accommodated in the receiving space la of the container cap 1 is inputinto the inside of the container body 5.

Thereafter, the user shakes the container to mix the additive “A” withthe internal content of the container.

If the container cap 1 is rotated in the left-hand screw direction inorder to separate the container cap 1 from the neck 6 of the containerbody 5 so that the internal mixture of the container body 5 can bedrunken, the stopper protrusion 11 c applies an upward pressure to thefirst stopper protrusion 22 a to then be rotated. As a result, as shownin FIG. 8, the free end of the joint portion 22 is lifted and thus thesecond stopper protrusion 22 b is released from the stopper protrusion 6b of the neck 6.

Thereafter, if the container cap 1 is taken out from the neck 6 of thecontainer body 5, the container cap 1 is completely separated from thecontainer body 5 as shown in FIG. 4, to thus achieve the second-stepcomplete opening state. Therefore, a user can drink the internal mixtureof the container body 5.

As described above, the container cap 1 according to the firstembodiment of the present invention is coupled with the neck 6 of thecontainer body 5 to thus maintain an air-tight state to prevent thecontent from leaking, and to simultaneously make the additive “A” thathas been isolated and accommodated in the receiving space la of thecontainer cap 1 input into the container body 5, at the time of thefirst-step partial opening of the outer cap 10 and then be mixed withthe content contained in the container body 5, and make the inner cap 20separated from the container body 5 together with the outer cap 10 atthe time of the second-step complete opening of the outer cap 10.

Therefore, if the container cap 1 according to the first embodiment ofthe present invention is employed in a container body 5 by amanufacturer, an additive “A” can be simply contained in the outer cap10 and then the inner cap 20 can be simply assembled with the outer cap10 so as to make the assembled outer and inner cap assembly easilyassembled with the container body 5.

In addition, after a user has purchased a product employing thecontainer cap according to the present invention, he or she can inputthe additive “A” into the container body 5 naturally through thefirst-step partial opening and the second-step complete opening to thenbe mixed with the content contained in the container body 5. Thecontainer cap 1 is separated from the container body 5 at the statewhere the inner cap 20 has been assembled with the outer cap 10, to thusmaintain convenience and safety in use.

Since the internal pressure of the additive “A” contained in thereceiving space 1 a and formed at the time of coupling the outer cap 10and the inner cap 20 is set higher than those of the inside and outsideof the container body 5 in the present invention, external air ormoisture can be fundamentally prevented from being input into the insideof the receiving space 1 a, to thereby enable the additive “A” to beconserved on a long-term basis.

A content contained in the container body 5 can be prevented frompermeating from the container body 5 into the inside of the receivingspace 1 a or leaking from the receiving space 1 a into the containerbody 5 by sealing the internal receiving space 1 a of the container cap1 by the leading end of the first and second cylindrical portions 12 and23 when the inner cap 20 is combined with the outer cap 10 in thisinvention. Besides, a variety of multiple sealing structures may beemployed in order to prevent a leakage between the container body 5 andthe outer cap 10.

A number of the annular small protrusions 23 b and 22 c are provided onthe inner circumference of the second cylindrical portion 23 of theinner cap 20 or the upper surface of the joint portion 22 of the innercap 20, to thus reinforce a sealing performance. That is, the annularsmall protrusions 23 b play a role of sealing between the first andsecond cylindrical portions 12 and 23 at the time of the first-steppartial opening of FIG. 7 as well as before having opened the containercap 1. In addition, the annular small protrusions 22 c prevent externalair or moisture from permeating into the inside of the container cap 1at a state where the first-step partial opening has not been performed.

Moreover, in the case that the joint portion 22 of the inner cap 20,especially the second stopper protrusion 22 b has been assembled withthe neck 6, the former is engaged with the stopper protrusion 6 b of thelatter, to thus prevent external air or moisture from permeating intothe inside of the container body 5.

Therefore, the container cap 1 according to the present inventionmaintains a sealing performance even at any step before and after thefirst-step partial opening, to thus prevent a leakage from occurring inthe container body or the receiving space 1 a, and to thereby keepsafety.

In addition, the container cap 1 according to this invention can beeasily disassembled or assembled even at re-use after it has been used,to thereby make it possible to wash or clean it to then re-use it. Inthe case that part of the mixture in which the additive “A” has beenmixed is taken and then the other part thereof is left, the containercap 1 is screw-engaged with the container body 5 in a reverse order withrespect to the process of separating the container cap 1 from thecontainer body 5. In this case, the container cap 1 is set as shown inFIG. 2, to thereby maintain a sealing performance in the inside of thecontainer body 5.

Moreover, the container cap 1 according to this invention employs acoupling structure and a sealing structure among the neck 6 of thecontainer body 5, the outer cap 10 and the inner cap 20 in a simplemanner. Accordingly, the neck 6 of the container body 5 and the outercap 10 may be easily formed of a synthetic material for example, and theinner cap 20 may be easily formed of an elastic material such aselastomer.

In addition, as an assembly of the outer cap 10 and the inner cap 20 andan assembly and a separation of the container cap 1 with respect to theneck 6 of the container body 5 can be very simply and easily achieved.

A container cap according to a second embodiment of the presentinvention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 11 to 13.

Since the second embodiment equals the first embodiment in view of itsbasic structure that function, the same reference numerals are assignedto the same components. The detailed description of the same componentsbetween the first and second embodiments will be omitted.

In the case of the container cap 1 according to the first embodiment, agroove 12 b into which the sealing extension portion 23 a of the secondcylindrical portion 23 of inner cap 20 is combined is formed on thelower surface of the outer cap 10, but in the case of the container cap1 according to the second embodiment, a step portion 12 c of the upperplate 12 is formed on the outer circumference of the first cylindricalportion 13 so as to remove the groove formed on the lower surface of theouter cap 10, to then remove the sealing extension portion of the secondcylindrical portion 23.

In addition, in the case of the container cap 1 according to the firstembodiment, the hemispherical ring-shaped protrusion 11 e and the groove11 d that are snap-engaged with the first stopper protrusion 22 a of thejoint portion 22 are formed at the upper side of the stopper protrusion11 c, but in the case of the container cap 1 according to the secondembodiment, the hemispherical ring-shaped protrusion 11 e has beenremoved and accordingly the groove 11 d formed at the upper side of thestopper protrusion 11 c has been removed.

First, a modified structure of the second embodiment includes a sealingstructure of the receiving space 1 a. However, even though the sealingstructure of the receiving space 1 a is removed, the receiving space 1 acan be sufficiently sealed by the other sealing structures. Instead, thecoupling structures of the outer cap 10 and the inner cap 20 issimplified more simply, to thus provide a merit of easily manufacturingthe container cap 1.

Moreover, even though the groove 11 d that is snap-engaged with thefirst stopper protrusion 22 a during opening and closing the containercap 1 is removed, a temporary stop operation is achieved by the stopperprotrusion 11 c, to thereby cause an operational problem to happen.

Therefore, the container cap 1 according to the second embodiment isassembled with the neck 6 of the container body 5 at a state where theadditive “A” has been accommodated in the receiving space la as shown inFIG. 11, and then is sold to users. The user shakes the container body 5after the first-step partial opening as shown in FIG. 12, to thus makethe additive “A” mixed with the content contained in the container body5, and then performs the second-step complete opening as shown in FIG.13 to thus make the user drink the internal mixture of the containerbody 5.

In addition, the second embodiment has the substantially same functionas that of the first embodiment, and thus has the same characteristicsand advantages as those of the first embodiment.

The container caps 1 of the first and second embodiments of the presentinvention are applied to for example drink containers such as sportsdrinks, and designed by using a heat resistant material so as to have astructure of pouring contents into the container body and then enduringa sterilization process at 87 to 93° C. for 15 to 20 minutes.

By the way, if a material such as PET (polyethylen terephthalate) isused for a container body, it is thermally deformed at 60° C. or so whena high is executed. Accordingly, in the case that a groove is providedin the inside of the neck of the container body, the groove is alsodeformed. As a result, in the case of using the heat resistant PETmaterial, it is required to heighten a heat resistant temperature of thematerial through a secondary process, that is, a crystallizationprocess.

By the way, in the case that spring water that is distributed at normaltemperature is contained in the container body or an aseptic content isfilled in the container body, there is no need to execute a hightemperature sterilization process. Even if a groove is formed in theinside of the neck of the container body using a general resin materialsuch as PET (polyethylen terephthalate), any secondary process is notrequired for.

Hereinbelow, a container cap according to a third embodiment of thepresent invention will be described. The container cap according to thethird embodiment of the present invention, can be applied when a drinkcontainer body for containing a drink that is distributed at normaltemperature or filling an aseptic content in the inside of the containerbody is manufactured using general resin material such as PET(polyethylen terephthalate), or a material whose heat-resistanttemperature is raised through the secondary process.

The container cap according to the third embodiment is equal to that ofthe first embodiment in view of a basic structure and function. Thus,the same reference numerals are assigned to the same components. Thedetailed description of the same components between the first and thirdembodiments will be omitted.

The container cap 1 according to the first embodiment includes theannular stopper protrusion 6 b that is protrudingly formed on the outercircumference of the leading end of the neck 6, but the container cap 1according to the third embodiment has no stopper protrusion 6 b butinstead includes a stop groove 6 e formed on the inner circumferencethereof, and a third stopper protrusion 23 c formed on the outercircumference of the second cylindrical portion 23 corresponding to thestop groove 6 e. The joint portion 22 has no second stopper protrusion22 b since there is no stopper protrusion 6 b, in the third embodimentof the present invention, although the second stopper protrusion 22 b iscoupled with the stopper protrusion 6 b in the first embodiment of thepresent invention. In the third embodiment of the present invention,only the first stopper protrusion 22 a is left on the leading endthereof.

In the third embodiment, the coupling force formed between the stopgroove 6 e and the third stopper protrusion 23 c should be set largerthan that of the first cylindrical portion 13 that is fitted into thecylindrical extension portion 21 a of the slant bottom portion 21. Thisis because the lower end of the first cylindrical portion 13 is releasedfrom the cylindrical extension portion 21 a of the slant bottom portion21 while maintaining a state where the third stopper protrusion 23 c ofthe inner cap 20 is combined with the stop groove 6 e of the neck 6until the first-step partial opening of the outer cap 10.

In addition, the coupling force formed between the stop groove 6 e andthe third stopper protrusion 23 c is set smaller than an upward pressurethat is applied to the first stopper protrusion 22 a by the stopperprotrusion 11 c according to the second-step complete opening of thecontainer cap 1, in a manner that the inner cap 20 can be detached fromthe neck 6 of the container body 5 together with the outer cap 10, atthe time of the second-step complete opening of the container cap 1.

Therefore, the container cap 1 according to the third embodiment isassembled with the neck 6 of the container body 5 at a state where theadditive “A” has been accommodated in the receiving space la in the samemanner as that of the first embodiment, and then is sold to users. Theuser shakes the container body 5 after the first-step partial opening asshown in FIG. 14, to thus make the additive “A” mixed with the contentcontained in the container body 5, and then performs the second-stepcomplete opening to thus make the user drink the internal mixture of thecontainer body 5.

In other words, at the first-step partial opening time of the outer cap10, the state where the inner cap 20 has been combined with the neck 6is maintained by a coupling force that is formed by being snap-engagedbetween the stop groove 6 e and the third stopper protrusion 23 c. Ifthe outer cap 10 is made to rotated in the left-hand screw directioncontinuously for the second-step complete opening, the stopperprotrusion 11 c applies an upward pressure to the first stopperprotrusion 22 a to then be rotated. As a result, the free end of thejoint portion 22 is lifted, to thus make the third stopper protrusion 23c released from the neck 6 of the stop groove 6 e.

Thereafter, if the outer cap 10, that is, the container cap 1 iswithdrawn from the neck 6 of the container body 5, the container cap 1and the container body 5 are perfectly separated from each other, tothus achieve the second-step complete opening state. Therefore, a usercan drink the internal mixture contained in the container body 5 safely.

The structure of the third embodiment is modified in a manner that thestate where the inner cap 20 has been combined with the neck 6 ismaintained until the first-step partial opening of the outer cap 10. Themodified structure of the third embodiment has the joint portion 22 of amore simplified structure than that of the first embodiment structure,to thus make it easy to manufacture it.

Since the third embodiment also has the substantially same function asthat of the first embodiment, and thus has the same characteristics andadvantages as those of the first embodiment.

The step portion that is bent in a two-stage form so that the centralportion of the upper plate of the outer cap is uplifted in comparisonwith the peripheral portions is formed in the first and secondembodiments, but it is possible to form no step portion.

Meanwhile, the additive contained in the container cap may be made of apowder form. However, it is possible to use the additive contained inthe container cap of a particle form by increasing size of the outletports.

Meanwhile, various kinds of additives are accommodated and kept incustody in the container cap in this invention. Consumers choose acontainer cap that contains a desired additive according to their tasteand conveniently replace an existing container cap with the chosen oneto drink it. Accordingly, functionality of drinking products andconsumers' satisfaction can be heightened.

As described above, the present invention has been described withrespect to particularly preferred embodiments. However, the presentinvention is not limited to the above embodiments, and it is possiblefor one who has an ordinary skill in the art to make variousmodifications and variations, without departing off the spirit of thepresent invention. Thus, the protective scope of the present inventionis not defined within the detailed description thereof but is defined bythe claims to be described later and the technical spirit of the presentinvention.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

This invention provides a container cap whose components are easilymanufactured and simply assembled, and that employs a sealing structurethat can be re-used. The container cap according to the presentinvention can be applied for drink containers in which the container capis opened stepwise, to thus make an additive contained in the containercap mixed with a content contained in a container body at a first-steppartial opening state, and then make consumers drink and use the mixtureof the additive and the content conveniently.

1. A container cap that is detachably combined with a neck that isextended from a container body containing a content and at the uppermostportion of which a neck stopper protrusion is protrudingly formed inwhich an additive is accommodated in an internal receiving space of thecontainer cap, the container cap comprising: an inner cap having asecond cylindrical portion whose upper portion is opened in which anumber of outlet ports through which the additive is discharged areformed at the lower side end of the second cylindrical portion that isinserted into the inside of the neck, and a joint portion that isprotrudingly formed from an outer circumference of an upper end of thesecond cylindrical portion to surround the neck stopper protrusion ofthe neck and that is detachably combined with the neck stopperprotrusion of the neck; and an outer cap having a first cylindricalportion that is slidably combined on an inner circumferential surface ofthe second cylindrical portion from an inner side of an upper plate in asurface-contacting manner and whose lower end is axially extended toblock the number of the outlet ports, and a threaded portion that isextended axially from an outer circumference of the upper plate to bescrew-engaged with the outer circumference of the neck, wherein thejoint portion of the inner cap comprises; a first stopper protrusionthat is formed on the outer circumference of the inner cap and engagedwith a threaded portion stopper protrusion that is disposed on the innercircumferential surface of the leading end of the threaded portion atthe time of completely opening the outer cap; and a second stopperprotrusion that is formed on an inner circumferential surface of theleading end of the joint portion and that is detachably combined withthe neck stopper protrusion of the neck, and wherein the number of theoutlet ports are opened and thus the additive of the receiving space isinput into the inside of the container body, at the time of partiallyopening the outer cap, and the outer cap is separated from the containerbody together with the inner cap, at the time of completely opening theouter cap.
 2. The container cap according to claim 1, wherein the secondcylindrical portion further comprises: a number of connecting portionsthat are extended at intervals at a lower end of the second cylindricalportion to form the number of the outlet ports; a slant bottom portionwhose central portion is protruded into the inside of the receivingspace; and a cylindrical extension portion that is extended axially fromthe slant bottom portion and is selectively fitted with the lower end ofthe first cylindrical portion and whose lower end is connected to thelower end of the number of the connecting portions.
 3. The container capaccording to claim 1, wherein a coupling force between the neck stopperprotrusion and the second stopper protrusion is set larger than thatbetween the cylindrical extension portion of the slant bottom portionand the first cylindrical portion, at the time of partially opening theouter cap, and an upward pressure that is applied to the first stopperprotrusion by the threaded portion stopper protrusion is set larger thanthe coupling force between the neck stopper protrusion and the secondstopper protrusion, at the time of completely opening the outer cap. 4.The container cap according to claim 1, further comprising an annularsmall protrusion that is protrudingly formed on the upper surface of thejoint portion in order to seal between the upper surface of the jointportion and the lower surface of the upper plate.
 5. The container capaccording to claim 1, further comprising a sealing extension portionthat is extended at the uppermost portion of the second cylindricalportion, and an annular groove that is formed on the lower surface ofthe first cylindrical portion and into which the sealing extensionportion is fitted when the inner cap is completely coupled with theouter cap.
 6. The container cap according to claim 1, wherein the innercap is made of a material of an elastic strain relatively larger thanthat of the outer cap.
 7. The container cap according to claim 1,further comprising an annular small protrusion that is protrudinglyformed on the inner circumference of the second cylindrical portion inan annular form and forms a sealing structure between the first andsecond cylindrical portions.
 8. The container cap according to claim 1,further comprising an annular small protrusion that is protrudinglyformed on at least one of the outer circumference of the cylindricalextension portion and the inner circumference of the lower end of thefirst cylindrical portion that is fitted with the outer circumference ofthe cylindrical extension portion in an annular form, to thus form asealing structure.
 9. The container cap according to claim 1, whereinthe neck comprises a male screw thread that is disposed at the lowerside of the neck stopper protrusion and that is screw-engaged with thethreaded portion, and wherein the neck stopper protrusion is formed ofan outer diameter smaller than that of the male screw thread to preventmutual collision between the joint portion of the inner cap and thethreaded portion of the outer cap, when the threaded portion of theouter cap is screw-engaged with the male screw thread at a state wherethe joint portion of the inner cap is coupled with the neck stopperprotrusion.
 10. The container cap according to claim 1, furthercomprising a hemispherical ring-shaped protrusion that is disposed atthe upper portion of the threaded portion stopper protrusion in order toform a groove that is snap-coupled with the first stopper protrusionthat is formed in the joint portion, at the time of partially openingthe outer cap.
 11. The container cap according to claim 1, wherein aslope surface or curved surface is formed on an upper surface of thefirst stopper protrusion of the joint portion so as to be snap coupledwith the threaded portion stopper protrusion when the outer cap and theinner cap are coupled with each other, in which a lower surface of thefirst stopper protrusion of the joint portion is perpendicular to theouter circumferential surface of the joint portion so as to bestop-coupled with the threaded portion stopper protrusion at the time ofcompletely opening the outer cap, and wherein a slope surface or curvedsurface is formed on the lower surface of the threaded portion stopperprotrusion so as to be snap coupled with the first stopper protrusion ofthe joint portion when the outer cap and the inner cap are coupled witheach other, in which the upper surface of the threaded portion stopperprotrusion is perpendicular to the inner circumferential surface of thethreaded portion so as to be stop-coupled with the first stopperprotrusion of the joint portion at the time of completely opening theouter cap.
 12. A container cap that is detachably combined with a neckat the uppermost portion of which an annular neck stopper protrusion isprotrudingly formed in which a male screw thread is disposed at thelower side of the neck stopper protrusion, and that comprises an innercap and an outer cap that make an additive contained in an internalreceiving space input into a container body, at the time of partiallyopening the outer cap, and that are separated together from thecontainer body, at the time of completely opening the outer cap, whereinthe inner cap comprises: a second cylindrical portion whose upperportion is opened in which a number of outlet ports through which theadditive is discharged are formed at the lower side end of the secondcylindrical portion that is inserted into the inside of the neck; anumber of connecting portions that are extended at intervals at a lowerend of the second cylindrical portion to form the number of the outletports; a slant bottom portion whose central portion is protruded intothe inside of the receiving space and that comprises a cylindricalextension portion whose outer circumference of which is extended axiallyand whose lower end is connected to the lower end of the number of theconnecting portions; and a joint portion that is protrudingly formedfrom an outer circumference of an upper end of the second cylindricalportion to surround the neck stopper protrusion of the neck and that isdetachably combined with the neck stopper protrusion of the neck, inwhich a first stopper protrusion is formed in an annular form on theouter circumference of the inner cap and a second stopper protrusion isformed on an inner circumferential surface of the leading end of thejoint portion so as to be detachably combined with the neck stopperprotrusion of the neck, wherein the outer cap comprises: a circularupper plate; a first cylindrical portion that is slidably combined on aninner circumferential surface of the second cylindrical portion from aninner side of the upper plate in a surface-contacting manner and whoselower end is axially extended to block the number of the outlet ports,so as to be coupled with the cylindrical extension portion, to therebyselectively establish the receiving space in a sealed form; and athreaded portion that is extended axially from an outer circumference ofthe upper plate to be screw-engaged with the male screw thread of theneck, in which a threaded portion stopper protrusion is disposed on theinner circumference of the upper side of the threaded portion so as tobe stop-coupled with the first stopper protrusion of the inner cap, atthe time of completely opening the outer cap.
 13. The container capaccording to claim 12, wherein an upward pressure that is applied to thefirst stopper protrusion by the threaded portion stopper protrusion isset larger than a coupling force between the lower surface of the neckstopper protrusion and the second stopper protrusion, at the time ofcompletely opening the outer cap.
 14. The container cap according toclaim 12, wherein a coupling force between the neck stopper protrusionand the second stopper protrusion is set larger than that between thecylindrical extension portion of the slant bottom portion and the firstcylindrical portion, at the time of partially opening the outer cap. 15.The container cap according to claim 12, further comprising an annularsmall protrusion that is protrudingly formed on the inner circumferenceof the second cylindrical portion in an annular form and forms a sealingstructure between the first and second cylindrical portions.